It’s July and Gennaro’s Cucina in West Caldwell has already booked a Christmas party. That’s a good sign for a business that opened its doors less than two months ago. Almost everything is new at this pizzeria and restaurant, with one notable exception. Husband and wife owners Tom and Bonnie Graziano — Basking Ridge residents — are proud to bring Gennaro Romeo back to this location at 40 Clinton Road, where Tom worked for about a decade when it was home to the popular Italianisimo. The Grazianos say they were matched up with Romeo—who is known for his grandma pizza and signature gravy—through…

The Tutoring Center at Dewy Meadow Village in Basking Ridge Saturday held its official ribbon cutting at 10 a.m. The new center's director and owner, Purvi Patel, said she wants to let the community know the center is open and enrolling students. The public is invited to an open house with refreshments and tours provided between 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the new center, at 403 King George Road. The new center's owner, Purvi Patel, said she wants to let the community know the center is open and enrolling students. The philosophy of the tutoring center is to invite students into a welcoming …

Members of the Bernards Township Regional Chamber of Commerce are invited to a monthly meeting and opportunity for socializing and networking from 6:30 to 8 p.m. next Wednesday at Kearns & Duffy Law Firm, 3648 Valley Road in the Liberty Corner section of Bernards Township. Chamber members are invited to introduce themselves and talk about what their business is up to, as well as networking with other business people from the area, according to an announcement from the chamber. The chamber's 2012 business scholarship winner, Julie Bottini, is scheduled to be at the meeting to meet chamber …

Millington Savings Bank announced on Wednesday that all five of its branches will again be collecting school supplies to be donated later this summer to the annual United Way of Northern New Jersey 2012 “Stuff the Bus” campaign. This marks the sixth year that the bank is collecting donations of school supplies for distribution to needy students from low-income families, according to Millington Savings. The bank is encouraging local community members to participat by donating new school supplies to drop-off locations at any of Millington’s five branches. Locations are in Millington, Basking …

The Somerset County Business Partnership will combine one of its most awaited networking events at one of the most interesting facilities in the country — the United States Golf Association Museum and Arnold Palmer Center for Golf History off Liberty Corner Road in the Far Hills section of Bernards Township. The Business Partnership’s monthly “Opportunity Knocks” networking meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 10, from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the museum built into an historic mansion on an estate at 77 Liberty Corner Road in Bernards Township. The evening will begin with more than 100 …

Millington Savings Bank once again successfully brought together a team of enthusiastic volunteers to participate in the American Cancer Society’s 28th Annual Relay for Life held on June 15-16 at Watchung Hills Regional High School. This marks the 12th year that the bank has participated in the event. Bernardsville branch also raised money In addition, donations collected during the bank’s recent “Shred Day” event at the Bernardsville branch on June 23rd raised an additional $282 for the cause. The Millington Savings Bank team, Banking on a Cure, secured the honor of top fundraising team in …

Dennis Bone, president of Verizon's New Jersey area since 2000, will retire from the company on July 6, the company announced on Monday. A Verizon news release Monday described Bone, a Madison resident, as one of New Jersey's business leaders for many years and "a champion for Verizon's shareholders, customers and employees in the public policy arena as well as in the business and nonprofit communities." The company said Jim Gerace, who heads Verizon's government and external affairs functions for the New York and Connecticut region, will take on responsibility for the company's efforts in …

A dozen volunteers from Janssen Research and Development in Raritan recently spent several hours at Lord Stirling Stable in Basking Ridge, pitching in to begin the first phase of construction for a Therapeutic Riding Program Sensory Trail in the pine grove along the stable's trails. The 12 volunteers from Janssen R&D, LLC, a Johnson & Johnson Company, trimmed and removed brush to prepare paths and clearings where objects will provide sight, sound, olfactory, and tactile stimulation for the stable's Therapeutic Recreation horseback riding students. The trail will include stations for mounted …

The Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), a Department of Defense agency, announced Monday that three New Jersey employers have been selected as semifinalists for the 2012 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award, including the Basking Ridge-based Verizon Wireless division of Verizon Co. The Freedom Award is the highest recognition given by the DoD to employers for exceptional support of their National Guard and Reserve employees. This year, 133 semifinalists nationwide stood out among an impressive pool of 3,236 nominees. The New Jersey employers named semifinalists …

Hal Maxwell, president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in New Jersey and Rockland County, NY, has announced John Bradley of the Bernardsville office is among the 18 of the regional company’s branch vice presidents who have been awarded the nationwide President’s Council for Managers Award. NRT, the parent company of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, recognized the top 20 percent of nationwide office sales managers who have demonstrated exemplary leadership and management skills, the announcement said. John Keates of the Flemington office also was among those to receive the award…

The two physical therapists who are new owners of Somerset Hills Physical Therapy, Sarah McParland of Bernardsville and Shelley Meltzer of Millington, say they actually are drawing on a 30-year tradition of care for the community, even with a new partership and a new address. The two longtime physical therapists said they already had offered care to local clients alongside the practice’s original owner, Dr. Judith Pasnick. After Dr. Pasnick retired in December, 2010, McParland, who worked for SHPT for 16 years, and Meltzer, who served as a physical therapist at the facility for two decades, …

Two Bernardsville residents, Spencer Wissinger and O. David Fischer, are partners with the accounting firm of Fischer Barr & Wissinger in Parsippany, which has announced that the firm recently received a clean opinion and jas passed peer review without exception, as required for public accounting practices. A peer review is a periodic external review of a firm’s quality control system in accounting and auditing. AICPA members engaged in the practice of public accounting are required to practice in a firm that is enrolled in an approved practice-monitoring program such as the Peer Review …

For 10 years, Totten-McGuirl Interiors was based from her Basking Ridge home, said Linda McGuirl, interior designer and partner for the interior design firm. However, last September, the firm moved into a circa-1930s building at 912 Mount Kemble Ave. on the "Country Mile" along Route 202 in Harding Township. However, McGuirl said the partners delayed their official grand opening until the months of February and March, during which McGuirl said the interior designers will feature a variety of special offers for those who stop in. The designers prepared their new space in conjunction with JS …

Jim Weichert named on 'top 100' list Jim Weichert, founder and president of Weichert, Realtors, has been selected for the Inman News list of the ‘100 Most Influential Real Estate Leaders’ for 2011, the fifth consecutive year Weichert has been honored with this celebrated distinction, the real estate brokerage announced. Weichert was recognized in the ‘Brokerages, Franchisors and Brokerage Organizations’ category for his more than 40 years of sales experience and the growth of Weichert, Realtors from a single office in 1969 to one of the largest privately held real estate companies in the …

It was the decidedly space-age retro design that caught the eye of Basking Ridge resident Lisa Domenick when she was contemplating franchise opportunities, but the concept is what sold her on it. Domenick was working in the marketing department of a pharmaceutical company, when she was downsized and found herself "looking for the next phase of my life." That's when she said she learned about the New York-based 16 Handles yogurt franchise, which offers 16 self-serve flavors of yogurt, some non-fat or low-fat, some sugar-free, and a sorbet. Although the flavors and 40 toppings mean "there's …

Following months of renovations and planning the move, Ridge Family Dentistry has opened in a prime building at 44-A South Finley Ave. that formerly had been built and occupied by BaseCamp Adventure Outfitters. The general dentistry practice opened in the central location on Dec. 17, said office manager Annabella Oliva. The three dentists practicing in the new location moved from a smaller office at 16 Ridge St., near the Basking Ridge train station. The dentists who see patients in the eight examination rooms are Dr. R. Cameron Witt, Dr. Joyce S. Kurdian and Dr. Lauren C. Simms. As part of …

Condé Nast recognizes Basking Ridge-based travel company Susan Kelly, founder of Travel Magic, a Basking Ridge-based travel company specializing in Disney vacations, has been honored for a fifth year on the 2011 List of Top Travel Specialists by high-end luxury travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler. The annual list by Condé Nast Traveler represents the world's finest travel companies, and is one ofthe most highly sought honors in the travel and tourism industry, Kelly said. Those on the list of travel specialists are chosen for offering the best combination of specialized knowledge, first-hand …

As Millington Savings Bank nears the end of its yearlong 100th anniversary celebration, the bank is conducting a "grand" final quarterly raffle in which entrants have a shot at grabbing cash in a special "money machine." This Friday, Dec. 16, one winner from each of the five branches of the Millington-based regional bank will be picked by Gary T. Jolliffe, Millington Savings Bank’s retiring president and chief executive officer, said a news release from the bank. Five days later, on December 21, winners will have the chance to individually enter a special 'money machine” where they will have …

Two new tenants, a preschool and a learning center, recently moved into the Highlands Village Center in The Hills, and a fitness training center for women is anticipated to open around January, Coldwell Banker Commercial Feist & Feist Realty Corp. has announced. Tiny Turtle Academy and Kumon Learning Center both already opened early this fall, said Peter Wisniewski, executive vice president of the commercial realty corp. in Basking Ridge, which is the leasing agent for available spaces at the Highlands Village at Liberty Corner. The lease for Get in Shape for Women, a national franchise, has …

Basking Ridge resident Jeremy T. Welther, principal, senior financial advisor, Certified Financial Planner, AIF and Chief Compliance Officer for Brinton Eaton, a wealth management firm, will along with another financial planner speak on Nov. 21 at William Paterson University in Wayne. Welther and Lauren Locker, Certified Financial Planner and founder of Locker Financial Services, LLC, will address a group of undergraduates participating in the Bachelor of Science in business administration/financial planning and certificate program about their experiences in the financial advisory industry. …